Fractures of carpal bones other than scaphoid: epidemiology, methods and results of treatment

Fractures of the carpal bones are rare compared to fractures of the metacarpals and phalanges. The triquetrum and scaphoid are the most frequently involved, and the other bones injuries are less common. The aim of the study was to analyze the incidence of carpal fractures other than the scaphoid bone, methods and results of their treatment.

Between 2021 and 2023, 35 patients, 25 men (71%) and 10 women (29%), at the mean age of 49 years, with isolated fractures of the carpal bones other than the scaphoid, were treated at the author's institution. Fractures of the triquetrum was the most commonly seen - 25 cases (71%), followed by the hamate bone - 6 cases (17%). Most fractures were treated conservatively with wrist immobilization for 5 weeks. Six patients (17%) required surgical treatment, most of them with the hamate fractures.

In a telephone interview at a mean of 16 months post-treatment, 31 patients (88%) had no symptoms in an affected wrist, and 32 (91%) rated the hand as fully functional, the same as before the injury. Three patients who assessed their hands as less functional, had accompanying injuries: distal radial fracture, fracture of the base of the first metacarpal bone, and metacarpo-phalangeal joints dislocation. All of these injuries required surgical treatment.

Fractures of the carpal bones other than the scaphoid are moderately common, their treatment is mostly conservative, and the results of treatment, both conservative and surgical, are good.